


The Children of Legends

by snowleopardanimagi



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, Bisexuality, Black Hermione Granger, Coming of Age, Desi Harry Potter, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Homosexuality, Hurt/Comfort, LGBTQ Themes, M/M, Multi, Non-binary character, Slow Burn, albus rose and scorpius are kind of the golden trio here, albus severus is going to learn that he wasn't named after "perfect" people in the least, dealing with expectations, eventually some snape and dumbledore bashing later on, kind of, mostly just kids trying to figure stuff out, teddy lupin is probably going to be non-binary or bigender
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-18
Updated: 2017-12-11
Packaged: 2019-01-19 08:01:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,809
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12406347
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/snowleopardanimagi/pseuds/snowleopardanimagi
Summary: Albus Severus Potter has begun his first year of Hogwarts with his cousin Rose Weasley, but he has a lot of expectations to live up to. Will he follow in his father's footsteps, or take a new path?





	1. New Beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> So I started this fic on Fanfiction.net about 5 years ago and then abandoned it. However I've been reading some fanfiction lately and I've been thinking about how much I disliked how Cursed Child ended up being, and well here is my take on Albus Severus Potter.
> 
> I am by no means a practicing writer and this fic is mostly just self indulgence, so by all means correct my grammar, spelling, and syntax! I'm open to criticism, just please know I'm brand new at this.
> 
> Anyways just some prior knowledge to set up the story:
> 
> I see Harry Potter as half white and half Desi Indian, so that's how he will be written.  
> I also see Hermione as black so that is how she will be written.

**Chapter 1: New Beginnings**

Albus and Rose pressed their fingers against the icy window of the Hogwarts Express, catching a few last glances of their parents and jealous younger siblings. The train started rolling forward and let out a loud whistle as they watched Hugo and Lily try to keep up with the train. Albus laughed as he watched Lily trip on the hem of her dress and fall square on her face while Hugo stepped over her and continued running after the train.

"Oh, Hugo!"  
Rose sighed and covered her freckled face with her hand.  
"He's so inconsiderate."

The train started to pick up in speed and Albus squinted to see Aunt Hermione giving Hugo a good scolding as Lily sobbed into Ginny's robes. Albus caught his fathers eyes and waved one last time before the fog engulfed the last sight of his family and the train set off to their knew home.

Albus curled up tightly with a rather itchy hand-knit maroon and gold blanket from his grandmother and leaned his head on the window to watch the trees go by outside. He watched his breath fog up the window and slowly fade many times to calm his nerves, but it wasn't working anymore. He tried fixing his hair while watching his reflection, but as expected his efforts were futile. He even tried tapping his foot on the floor, but all he got was a glare from Rose who was rereading Hogwarts a History for what felt like the millionth time.

Rose's wand was balanced on her ear precariously, and her dark auburn bushy hair was falling every which way after breaking out of one too many hair ties. Rose most certainly inherited Hermione's untamable hair, but she looked like a perfect mix of both her parents. While Hermione's complexion was deep brown and Ron's was very pale, Rose adopted a medium brown skin tone with an unmistakable smattering of Weasley freckles. She had a tendency to read very intently which often caused her to make weird faces while she read. Albus liked to tease her when she unknowingly made funny faces.

Although Rose often had her nose buried in books, she certainly had an adventurous spirit for getting into trouble. While Albus much preferred steering clear of any trouble, Rose had a knack for dragging him into it. There was no doubt she was a Granger-Weasley.

Suddenly Albus felt a small paw swat at the side of his head, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"Ow Sage! What was that for?"

A puffy tabby cat looked up at him and swished her tail. She darted her eyes towards his fingers. Apparently, Albus had been tapping his fingers too loudly while deep in thought and this must have woken up his disgruntled cat. Her green eyes gazed down to watch Rose's tiny owl named Petal, who was still sound asleep. Sage glared back up at Albus and flicked her whiskers as if to say  _how dare you wake me up._

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you."

Albus scratched behind her ears and under her chin all was forgiven and Sage started to purr in his lap.

In Diagon Alley Albus had planned on picking out an owl at Eeylops Owl Emporium. Harry told him about his old owl Hedwig and Albus wanted a snowy owl of his own. His plans were foiled however, when a stubborn silvery tabby kept brushing up against his legs. She had escaped The Magical Menagerie to follow him and Albus swooped her up and dragged his parents to the shop to pay for her. The shop clerk told them she was half kneazle and tried to show them other cats, but Albus wouldn't let the cat go. Harry  then put some money on the counter and said, "We'll take her." He turned to Albus and continued. "Hermione bought a half kneazle cat from this shop named Crookshanks and that cat saved our lives many times. Plus this one really likes you. What's her name?" Albus smiled from ear to ear and whispered, "Her eyes are green and she's really smart so... Sage."

Albus kept petting Sage until she fell asleep, leaving him alone with his anxious thoughts.

Ever since his brother James put the idea in his head, Albus kept worrying about being placed in Slytherin. It made his stomach churn and knot up at the thought.  _What would his siblings think? What would his schoolmates think?_ Everyone in his family was  _always_ put in Gryffindor. What if little Albus Potter was put into the house that housed so many dark witches and wizards? Would that make him a bad person?

He slouched back into his seat and watched as Sage stretched her legs and opened her eyes. She looked up at Albus with a sympathetic green glance that reminded him of his father and his words...

_Albus Severus, you were named for two headmasters of Hogwarts. One of them was a Slytherin and he was probably the bravest man I ever knew._

Albus knew that his father's words were supposed to put him at ease, but they didn't. Albus had heard the stories of wicked witches and wizards that were sorted in Slytherin house and he just couldn't imagine a good atmosphere and he couldn't shake the feeling that Slytherin was where he belonged.

Rose jabbed Albus with her elbow hard.

"Oi, Al! We're witches and wizards, not zombies. Honestly, get a grip, cousin."

Al rubbed his shoulder as Sage jumped off his lap with a puffed up tail after Rose's sudden noise.

"Right, sorry."

"Oh, sorry Sage." Rose held out her hand for Sage to sniff.

"I didn't mean to startle you, I just wanted to knock some sense into your human."

Sage decided to forgive Rose and curled up in her lap purring soundly.

"Oh great. Bruise my arm and steal my cat." Al rolled his eyes. "You're such a charming cousin."

"Yeah, she sure looks stolen." Rose said gesturing towards the now asleep Sage.

"She's been cat-napped. She's soooo mortified."

"Okay whatever." Al grumbled.

They could hear some footsteps shuffling down the hall and soon James was at the door to their compartment knocking on the glass panel.

"Losers get your crap together. Hogwarts in three minutes."

"Already?"

Al looked over at Rose who had already put on her robes.

"We have to hurry Al!" Rose closed the latch to her tiny owls cage and proceeded to coax Sage into her cat carrier with treats.

Al shrugged on his black robes and held on to Sage's carrier as the train started to halt.

He closed his eyes shut as the train screeched to a stop and it was time to exit the train.

_Please not Slytherin._


	2. Scamanders

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Albus and Rose meet the Scamander twins.

** Chapter 2: Scamanders **

 "Alright first years, put your luggage over here! Us Prefects are in charge of getting them to the castle and taking them to your house once you're sorted."

Albus and Rose placed their luggage down and watched as the Prefects charmed them to float in a line of bags up to the castle. 

"Wingardium Leviosa!" Rose said to Albus, "That's the spell the Prefects are using to float our luggage! Mum told me about that one."

Just as Albus was about to ask about where their pets would go a loud booming voice addressed the students.

"Firs' years-" A huge stocky man that Albus realized must be Rubeus Hagrid announced. "Don't yah worry about yer critters, I've gotta bunch of threshal carriages to carry the lot.  Don' worry I'll take good care of 'em once we reach the castle. I am the Care of Magical Creature's teacher after all! Once yer sorted, I'll make sure each of yer animals get's to your rightful house. Alrigh' now place those lovely creatures over here next to me an' we'll get em all cozy and set in the carriages."

While brushing their way through the crowds to drop off Sage and Petal, Rose and Albus watched non other than Albus' brother James yelling loudly for Hagrid's attention while the prefects began to load the animals onto the carriages. 

"Hey, Hagrid!" 

" 'ey James!" Hagrid gave James a pat on the shoulder as he continued to load the pets onto carriages. "I hope yer not givin' yer parents any trouble."

"Nah, not me." James winked before climbing back onto the train. Al could clearly see the marauder's map hanging out his front pocket.  _Yeah, not you James._

Hagrid and the prefects must have finished loading up the carriages with all the animals as he turned around and said. "Alrigh' firs' years now follow me!" He waved a dinner-plate sized hand, motioning to the row boats floating on the lake. The older students just took the train all the way up to Hogwarts, or rode in on one of the threshal-drawn carriages, but the first years got a more flashy entrance.

A group of students blocked Albus from seeing what Hagrid pointed out.

"I can't see anything." Rose puffed, standing on her tip-toes. "Can you Al?"

Al responded by gesturing to their height difference.

"Right, I forgot, you're shorter than me. That was a stupid question. I guess I'm so excited I can't think straight!"

As the crowd started to move Albus could finally see the boats which were filling in quite quickly.

"C'mon Al!"

Rose grabbed Albus by the sleeve and dragged him over to a boat where two blond boys had just climbed into.

"Can we sit here?"

Neither of them responded. One was too busy hanging off the front of the boat trying to get a glimpse of the castle through the fog, while the other had his eyes fixed on a volume of Hogwarts a History.

"Hogwarts a History? I've read that five times already; I think I've practically memorized it. Did you hear about the Great Hall ceiling? It looks just like the sky..." Rose kept speaking to the silent blond boy and Albus turned to the one who was hanging over the front of the boat.

"Are you guys twins?" Al asked the boy placed precariously over the edge of the boat.

"Hmmm?" The boy turned around to face Al. "Oh, Lysander and I? Yeah, we're twins. How could you tell?"

"Lorcan," The other boy spoke with his nose still in his book, "It's obvious."

"I know," The boy named Lorcan pouted, "I'm just joking."

Lysander huffed and went back to reading.

Al glanced back and forth at twins and stopped to look at Lorcan. "No offense, but your brother is a bit of a stick in the mud."

Rose chimed in, rolling her eyes, "Says, Mr. I'm-too-nervous-to-have-any-fun."

"Oh, shut up Rose!" Al snapped back.

She laughed, "He's just a bit bitter."

Lorcan smiled widely. "Well, come on then! I think I see the castle!" He pointed forwards.

Albus hadn't noticed that the boats had started moving until now.

"Whoa..." Al whispered,"it's..."

"Incredible!" Lorcan stood up, "Ly, look!"

Lysander didn't even glance up, but Rose was practically jumping in her seat.

The fog receded revealing the glow from the moon. The castle rested on a vast hillside overlooking the lake. Trailing sets of stairs split off almost endlessly into different paths. The structures at the top seemed to outstretch into the clouds. Details of gargoyles and swirling art were carved carefully into the sides of the castle. The boats ahead of them had just passed under the largest bridge. Every constellation was visible in the night sky and the stars reflected on the water like millions of fireflies.

"Try trailing your hand in the water," Lorcan said as he dipped his fingers on the surface and neon colorful globes emerged from the depths, circling his fingers, "Ly, told me about this a little while ago. They're so bright!"

Al trailed his hand along side the boat and watched in awe as the globes circled his fingers.

"They're jellyfish!" Lorcan said. He was brimming with excitement.

Startled, Albus jerked his fingers back and knocked his glasses off his face with the sudden movement. He reached and tried to catch his glasses before they fell into the watery depths, but he wasn't quick enough, it seemed like he hadn't inherited the Quidditch seeker genes from his father. Albus just didn't have the the coordination to catch his falling glasses, let alone a golden snitch. It probably didn't help that he could only see a blur of what was  _probably_ outline of his glasses without them. Right now Al resented James for getting Ginny's perfect vision.

The next thing Albus felt was their boat come to an abrupt stop, dizzying him.


	3. Blame the Jellyfish

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oh Lorcan... The ever impulsive.

** Chapter 3: Blame the Jellyfish **

**_SPLASH_ **

The loud noise erupted next to the boat and Albus felt cold water drops hit his face. He tried to look around to find the source of the noise, but the lake was just a blur without his glasses. The boat lurched to a halt, giving Albus a mild case of whiplash. _No glasses, our boat isn't moving, and we're probably going to be late on our first day at Hogwarts... Great._

"Merlin's beard, is he mad?" Rose was the first to break the silence.

"Wh-" Albus turned to Rose, "what the hell just happened?"

"That idiot just dived into the lake!" Rose sounded incredulous, "what in the name of bloody hell was that Lorcan boy thinking?"

"He did what? But the jellyfish-"

"The jellyfish don't sting," Lysander closed his book to look at Rose and Albus, "they're just a fancy decoration."

"But that water is still bloody cold," Rose frowned, "even if the jellyfish don't sting."

"True the water is cold," Lysander pointed to Albus, "but judging from his strained expression I think he really needs those glasses."

"I... dropped my glasses in the water and he went to go get them?"

"Yep." Lysander sighed. "Lorc doesn't make friends easily. I guess he wanted to prove himself. He must want to be your friend."

"Oh... Uh, will he be okay?"

"He should be fine," Lysander shrugged, "stuff like this happens all the time with Lorc-"

Just before Lysander could finish his sentence a pale blond head surfaced and bobbed in the chilly water. His grin spread widely across his face and he looked quiet proud of himself. Lorcan must have seen Al's bewildered expression since he started laughing and sputtering water the moment he looked at him. Lorcan gasped for air in between his laughs, "don't-"  _cough_ "just sit-"  _gurgle_ "there-" he sputtered some water out to speak clearly, "help me will you?!!"

Al grasped Lorcan's hand tightly while Rose grabbed Lorcan's other hand and they pulled the boy safely back into the boat. Once back on board the soaked boy toppled the both of them over which dampened their robes as well. Lysander hadn't moved an inch from his seat, instead choosing to watch everything with a glint of amusement in his eyes. The boat shifted at the regained weight and started moving again. It sped up quickly, trying to catch up to the other boats that were now so far away.

"That was... uh," Al lost his thought process as he watch the sopping wet boy pull out his glasses from under his robe pockets, "how did you find them?!!!"

"A mermaid handed them to me. She was inspecting them when I swam over to her. When I gestured to the surface and the boat she seemed to understand and kindly handed them over to me. Merpeople don't speak English, nor are the Hogwarts ones a pretty sight, but they're nice enough. I speak a little Mermish, but I think I'd probably drown if I tried to talk in the lake. Too much water would fill my lungs. Yuck."

Lorcan then placed the glasses on his own face, "Merlin's beard you're blind! I can't see anything."

He quickly handed the glasses back to Albus, who wiped them off on the dry part of his robes.

"Oh I forgot to tell you our full names! I'm Lorcan Scamander by the way and my grumpy brother is Lysander Scamander."

"Scamander?" Albus replied, "are you Luna's twins?"

"Yes our mother's name is Luna," Lysander chimed in, "and you must be Albus Potter." He then turned to Rose, "and judging by your bushy red hair, freckles, and wit, you must be Rose Weasley."

"Albus?" Lorcan's eyes widened, "Albus Severus Potter? Wow! We've heard so many stories of your father and how he conquered the dark lord! My mom was friends with your dad and she used to help him out. This is amazing!" He shook Albus' hand vigorously. In that moment Al just wanted to jump off the boat and swim to the castle himself.

"Don't scare him off." Lysander rolled his eyes, "You want to be friends right?"

"Right..." Lorcan frowned, "sorry."

"Well," Rose smirked, "I guess your dad really is popular Al." She twirled a strand of hair around her finger, "of course we know our parents did some heroic stuff, but that was _ages_ ago! I can't believe people still go on about it. Ugh, and dad said it was him who was attracting all the attention at the train station, 'I'm famous' my arse dad! They were staring at Uncle Harry."

Albus grimaced, "I hate how weird people are around us. They just think of me as Harry Potter's son, nothing else. I want to be my own person. I want to be a regular Hogwarts student."

"Well, that's not going to happen Al. We're the children of legends," Rose winked, "A lot is expected out of us," She patted him on the back softly to try and comfort him.

Sensing Al's change in mood, Lorcan gave him a light punch in the arm and a grin.

"Hey, it's okay. At least you won't be like James. I heard he loves the attention, basks in it really. He drives teachers up the walls. How he hasn't got expelled in the past two years is beyond me. He's a legend of his own."


	4. A Different Sort

Chapter 4: A Different Sort

Albus, Rose, Lorcan, and Lysander arrived late to the Great Hall. All of them were panting and out of breath except for Lysander who took his time getting there.The welcoming speech had started without them and Professor Longbottom stopped to address the four stragglers. 

"Hmm..." Professor Longbottom laughed, "looks like a few students have already gotten into trouble." 

His eyes rested on Lorcan who was still drenched from head to toe and shivering in his wet robes. The poor boy was turning blue and purple at the lips, but still smiling brightly. Neville waved his wand in Lorcan's direction and the crowd watched as the boy's robes and hair dried instantly. Neville must have cast a warming charm as well, as Lorcan's teeth stopped chattering and he was no longer shivering. Lorcan beamed at the Professor with starry eyes."Thank you Professor!!!"

 Neville smiled sympathetically and laughed again.

"In my first year I lost my toad and ended up interrupting Professor McGonagall's speech. I found him right in front of her feet and was so relieved to find him that I shouted his name and scooped him up. She was **_not_** happy."

A few students in the crowd laughed.

"Just try not to get on  _her_ bad side. Professor McGonagall isn't the type to give students much slack," Neville gestured for the students to follow him deeper into the hall, "alright now crowd in here everyone we're getting to the ceremony shortly."

Neville stood up at the stage in front of the teacher's tables and placed an old tattered hat gently on a stool.

"What is that going to do?" Al asked Lorcan, but he was shushed.

The hat split at the seams, and opened up to a mouth. It began to sing a song. The rest of the school chimed in to the school song, leaving the first years confused. Once the song had stopped and the hall had gone silent Neville conjured up a list of students in front of the talking hat.

The hat crumpled a bit in frustration as if furrowing a brow, "alphabetical order again? I think it's due time to switch things up. Let's try randomizing the order this year. Give an old hat some excitement will you?"

Neville rolled his eyes at the hat, but obliged with it's wish. He waved his wand and the names were scrambled in no particular order.

"Ah yes, much better," the hat curled into what looked like a smile, "that's refreshing. Alright Professor, who's first?"

Professor Longbottom called out a name, but Albus didn't quite catch what he said.

A silvery-blond boy with slicked back hair shuffled his was through the crowd, sat on the stool, and waited for instructions. Professor Longbottom barely placed the hat on the boy's head when it shouted, "SLYTHERIN!" The boy seemed to wince, but nonetheless composed himself and calmly strolled over to the Slytherin table and took a seat.

_"Mungo, Maurice!"_

A shy stocky kid made his way to the hat and was sorted into Ravenclaw.

".......... _Carrow_..." the professor paused with a pained expression on his face and cleared his throat, "Ahem.. _Carrow, Beatrice_."

The brown haired girl was placed into Slytherin.

_"Cooper, Cedric!"_

The hat took a bit longer deciding the house of this dark haired boy, but settled on Hufflepuff for his house. 

The list of names kept drawing on and Albus found himself tuning out until he heard, _"Scamander, Lysander!"_

Lysander fixed his pony tail and gracefully walked over to the sorting hat. Lorcan grasped Albus' shoulder in anticipation while his brother was being sorted.

"UNDOUBTEDLY RAVENCLAW!"

Lysander smiled softly as he heard Lorcan cheering obnoxiously loud for him and took his place at the Ravenclaw table.

Ironically, Lorcan was called up to the hat next.

"Huh, _Scamander, Lorcan_."

"Wish me luck Albus!" Lorcan gave Albus a squeeze on his shoulder and ran up to the sorting hat. His knees were shaking and he kept twiddling his thumbs.

"Oh, interesting," the hat mused, "you're curious and have a zest for knowledge a very Ravenclaw trait... But, you have loyalty and compassion like a Hufflepuff. Hmmm... I see. I see. Impulsiveness to a reckless degree... There's bravery in that.... I think? Oh yes, I see now. You are brave aren't you? Well then, you must be a  _GRYFFINDOR!"_

In a state of panic or confusion, Lorcan started sprinting over to the Ravenclaw table to join his brother but he stopped himself and ran over to sit at the Gryffindor table.

Rose and Albus stood close together as they watched a bunch of other students get sorted. Rose would give him a reassuring smile every now and then but her smile was just a tad too forced and her foot kept tapping on the ground. She was nervous too.

_"Granger-Weasley, Rose!"_

Rose grasped her hands together so tightly that her knuckles looked pale. She nodded at Albus and made her way to the sorting hat, her curly red hair bouncing with each stride. Her face was unreadable when she sat down.

"A brilliant mind... sharp like you're mother," Rose closed her eyes, "but I see you are stubborn and headstrong. You're willing to take risks and you're drawn to danger... No no, Ravenclaw wouldn't be a good fit for you. You're brilliant but, bravery is your strongest trait. Must be GRYFFINDOR!"

James whistled loudly from the Gryffindor table and waved his arms around, trying to embarrass Rose. Their slightly older cousin Fred let out mini fireworks from Zonko's Joke Shop to celebrate and laughed when one got a little too close to James' nose. James ignored the mishap and switched into a standing ovation, he clapped his hands loudly right next to Rose's ears when she arrived. Rose slapped his hands away and laughed at Lorcan who was mocking James behind his back. Fred took the opportunity to steal the Marauder's map from James. The two would make a game of stealing the map from one another when they weren't trying to prank the school together.

More names were called and Albus stood waiting with none of his friends or family by his side.

_"Najjar, Imani!"_

A Hufflepuff this time. It took a while for the hat to decide.

_"Khan, Kala."_

A Ravenclaw girl.

_"Brown, Aster!"_

A girl with long dirty-blond hair twirled her locks nervously and was placed into Gryffindor.

_"Thomas-Finnegan, Desmond!"_

Another Gryffindor.

Albus watched as student by student, the Great Hall tables were filling up. There were less and less students left to sort. The time was passing by in a blur and his knees began to buckle under the stress and nerves. Albus watched the rest of the sorting in a daze until he was the last first year student waiting to be sorted. 

_"Potter, Albus!"_

Albus was too deep in his thoughts to hear his name called.

**_"Potter, Albus!"_ **

Albus still didn't hear his name being called.

**_"ALBUS POTTER!!!"_ **

Albus snapped out of his daze and his face flushed beet red. His palms got clammy and he could feel his heart pacing faster and faster. He could hear his heartbeat beat loudly in his ears. He hurried over to the Sorting Hat and Professor Longbottom placed the hat atop Albus' head once he took a seat.

 "Oh, _Albus Potter_... this will be... _very_ interesting...." he could just  _feel_ the grin sprouting from the hat's seamed lips," you look just like your father, but you're much different. Much, much, different than both your brother James and your father Harry..."

Albus shivered.  _Just please put me in Gryffindor!_

"Gryffindor? Are you sure? Your thoughts tell me that you want to be different than Harry and James. You don't want to be stuck under your father's legacy forever do you?"

Albus reflected on what Harry told him. Didn't the sorting hat say it would do what he wanted in his heart? Maybe he didn't want to be the same as his father and brother but he still wanted to be a Gryffindor... _right?_

"Albus... You want to make a name for yourself. I can read your thoughts. I know you don't want to be known as 'Harry Potter's kid' for the rest of your life. And you certainly don't want to be a reckless trickster like your brother James. James doesn't want to live up to the expectations people have of the Potter family, he just wants to be liked. But you Albus, you have ambition. You want to be a great wizard. You want to be known as Albus Severus Potter and not just the son of a hero. James made a new name for himself by being the class clown, don't you want to find your own way to be recognized?"

Albus felt his stomach churn in panic. Did Al's subconscious not want to be a Gryffindor? He could feel the hundreds of eyes glued on him.

"Hat, I want to be in Gryffindor. I want to be with my friends and my family! Please put me in Gryffindor. I know you put my father in Gryffindor when he asked you to. Can't you do the same for me?"

"Albus, when I was sorting Harry I could not decide whether I wanted him to be placed in Slytherin or if he belonged in Gryffindor. When Harry asked me not to be placed in Slytherin, I found that to be very brave of him and then Gryffindor he was! To be honest, I'm not even considering you for Gryffindor. You want to be in Gryffindor because you are afraid of what others will think if you aren't placed in Gryffindor. You want to take the safe way out even though it might make you miserable. That does not sound like a Gryffindor to me," the hat paused, "you have passion, potential, and the ambition to make something of yourself! I can't let that ambition fade away. My job is find out where students will grow to their fullest potential. You are a Slytherin Albus. How can you not see just how perfect Slytherin is for you?"

Harry's words repeated in his mind:

 _Albus Severus, you were named for two headmasters of Hogwarts. One of them was a Slytherin and he was probably the bravest man I ever knew._ Other houses could be brave too. And he wanted to be great, he wanted to be different, he  _didn't_ want to be known as  _the-son-of-the-boy-who-lived._ He needed to follow his own path and make his own friends. He needed to strive to build his own future. He didn't want to live in the shadow of his father or his prankster-quidditch-seeker-brother! He wanted to be thought of as _Albus_ , and nothing else.

"Although unsure of what you truly want," Albus bit his lip hard, "you are ambitious, cunning, and resourceful. Albus is a full-fledged... **SLYTHERIN!** "

The hall went silent. As the hat was lifted off of Al's head every pair of eyes stared him down. Even Professor Longbottom couldn't help, but gawk. He caught the eyes of Lorcan, Lysander, Rose, and James. Lorcan shrugged and smiled sympathetically. Lysander had dropped his book on the floor at the Ravenclaw table. Rose was trying her best to fake a smile, but Albus could see the shock and confusion in her eyes.

James had the worst possible reaction. He jumped out of his seat bolt upright and turned to the hat. **"This is a joke right? You have got to be _kidding_ me!"**

The hat frowned, "do I look like I joke around often boy?"

James sat back down looking like he just got hit by an especially large bludger.

Professor Longbottom gave Albus a light nudge and whispered,

"Albus head to your seat..."


	5. Same Difference

Every step Albus took towards the Slytherin table felt like it played out in slow motion. His head was swimming with the noise of the Great Hall. Students were gasping, shouting, and laughing at the unlikely Slytherin boy.

Albus started to pull the hood of his robes over his head in an attempt to drown out the noise. He let the hood drop down when he caught a glance of the green lining of the inside of the robes.  _This has to be a mistake._ He put his hand on his chest to take a deep breath and felt some sort of embroidery under his palm. He was expecting it, but he still felt a pang of hurt when he saw the Slytherin crest embroidered onto his robes. His eyes welled up with tears, but he wiped them away as quick as they fell, hoping that nobody saw him cry. His expression hardened into determination.  _This is real... This is happening._ Albus lifted his head up high and strode over with false confidence to the Slytherin table.

...

Trying to find a seat at the Slytherin table proved more difficult than trying to cuddle a baby dragon and Albus had in fact, tried to cuddle a baby dragon before. Uncle Charlie had insisted on having the family come visit him in Romania and gave Albus a baby Norwegian Ridgeback to hold. The hatchling was the offspring of Norberta, a personal favorite of Charlie's. Excited to share his passion with his nephew, Charlie forgot to show Albus how to properly hold a baby dragon. It took months for Al's eyebrows to grow back.

The difficulty in finding a seat wasn't just because the whole hall was still watching him, but because of the glares shot at him from his fellow housemates. Every time he moved to sit at an open spot his classmates would scoot together tightly or urge that the seats around them were already taken. Albus worked his way all the way to the end of the grand table when finally, a student rolled his eyes and gestured for him to sit. It was the blond boy with the slicked back hair, the first student to get sorted. Albus hadn't been paying attention when the boy's name was called.

"Listen to me, just because I let you sit here, doesn't mean we're friends, got it?"

"I wasn't expecting as much," Albus shrugged.

The boy sighed, sounding slightly annoyed, "I guess it's only polite to introduce myself... My name is Scorpius Malfoy in case you didn't catch it."

Surprised, Albus turned to the boy, "wait you're a Malfoy?"

"Yeah, what's it to you Albus? You're a _Potter kid_ in Slytherin house!" 

Scorpius took one look at Albus' puffy eyes and looked like he wanted to eat his words.

"Sorry, I didn't mean it. My father just said-"

"Why do you have to listen to him?"

"I-uh what?"

"Why do you have to listen to your father?"

"I don't-"

"You should chose what _you_ want. You don't have to follow in your father's footsteps."

"I'm _not_ my father," the boy hissed, "I never want to be like him! He made all the wrong choices and I just..." he paused, "don't want to associate with you is all."

"Hmm... whatever you say Scorp." Al smirked. The back-and-forth-banter made him feel a bit better.

"Excuse me Potter? Don't ever ever call me that dreadful nickname again!"

Al wore a smug grin, "Scoooorp!"

"Stop-"

"Scoorrrp-"

"Why you-"

"Scoooooooorp-"

"That's it!" Scorpius grabbed Albus by the shoulders and started shaking him back and forth.

"Whoa, stop I'm getting dizzy."

Scorpius glanced at Al's expression and started laughing, his voice, fortunately, drowning in thousands of others as to not attract unwanted attention.

"Ha ha, very funny Malfoy. I bet I don't look as ridiculous as you, grease-hair!"

Surprisingly, Scorpius didn't look too upset at the insult if at all.

"Ugh this?" Scorpius lifted a strand from his slicked back hairstyle, "yeah, I know. Father and mother think it looks sophisticated. Mother even started crying because apparently, I look like my father when I was his age like this."

"Wow. What was the style back then? Greased duck heads?"

"Probably," his mouth curved at the corners, "you're awful Potter, maybe you are a Slytherin."

"...I don't want to be awful," he glanced at the faces of his friends and family huddled up at the Gryffindor table. "I just want to be myself."

"I was just kidding around with you," Scorpius laughed, "you look way too messy to be as horrible as half this table," he rolled his eyes. "Look at them, sitting high in their chairs with their crisp clean outfits like they're better than everyone else. It's like my parents." Scorpius sighed, "I don't care if they like to look nice, but seriously, I'm sick of them ragging on people for not doing so."

"You're... actually a really nice person Scorpius."

"Shut up Albus."

_I've been sorted into Slytherin and I've befriended a Malfoy_ _... What will dad think?_

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading!


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